Location type

Name and dates

Description

This yard still exists, but today it consists of two looped sidings to the north east of Fouldubs Junction whereas historically it was a marshalling yard. It was also known as Grangemouth West Yard and Fouldubs Marshalling Yard. The yard not only dealt with traffic for Grangemouth and the immediate area but also was a principal marshalling yard for longer distance traffic with long distance trains being re-marshalled here for onward travel in Scotland. The line is now electrified and the Fouldubs Junction signal box is still open.

This first version of this yard dates from the 1880s. The opening of the first major dock at Grangemouth, the Carron Dock, was in 1883. The railway had only just been doubled, in 1882, in anticipation of new traffic with the opening of the dock.

The yard was laid out between Fouldubs Junction (south west) and Grangemouth South Signal Box (north east).

On the north side of the alignment were looped sidings, with headshunts/sidings to the west and dead end sidings to the east. Access was from the west at Fouldubs Junction.

On the south side were dead end sidings approached from Grangemouth South Signal Box.

The yard was to be extended enormously for the opening of the Grange Dock in 1906 and the new approach to Fouldubs Junction from Bainsford in 1911. The double line was now quadrupled.

On the north side further west end sidings were added. The east end sidings remained relatively unchanged but a new exit for the west end sidings was added which passed round the north of the east end to reach the Grangemouth No 1 Signal Box (replacing the south box).

Also on the north side was a branch from the south box which served timber yards to the north of the east end sidings (the relocated Caledonian Saw Mills which had been in the dock area) and a chemcial works.

On the south side a long loop passing round the older south side sidings served two sets of new dead end sidings to the west and a further set to the east. To the south saw mills, including the Abergrange Saw Mills, were served.

The yards have been progressively drastically cut back.

By the 1990s only the north sidings remained. The layout was a loop on the north side, approached from Fouldubs Junction, which led to five dead end sidings. This was the SpeedLink yard. Traffic to Grangemouth New Oil Terminal, Grangemouth Oil (Gas) Terminal, Grange Dock, Blue Circle Cement Grangemouth and Russell Depot Grangemouth was able to be handled here. Until about 1980 traffic to Falkirk Aluminium Works was also handled. This was the main yard in the Grangemouth area with the dock yard at Grangemouth No 3 Signal Box having closed in 1985. The compact yard and Grangemouth Shed worked well as a small freight centre.

Tags

Aliases